This year, the IBE surveyed employees in Japan for the first time and the results show some positive indicators of an ethical culture at work, as well as areas that could indicate improvement required. For instance, of the 16 surveyed countries, employees in Japan are the least likely to find each of eight ethically questionable workplace practices listed on p9 of the global report to be acceptable. They are less likely than the global average to say that they have been aware of misconduct at work and are among the least likely to experience retaliation after speaking up about misconduct.

However, they are less likely than average to say that honesty is practised always or frequently in their organisation. Of the surveyed countries, they are the least likely to raise concerns about misconduct and among the most likely to feel pressured to compromise their organisation’s standards of behaviour, often due to their boss’s orders and unrealistic deadlines. They are less likely than the global average to be satisfied with the outcome after speaking up about misconduct.

In terms of the ethics programme, they are the least likely to be aware that their organisation has written standards of ethical business conduct and provides a means of reporting misconduct confidentially. They are also less likely than the global average to be aware of the other building blocks of an ethics programme considered in the survey.

Of the 16 surveyed countries, employees in Japan have the poorest view on their line manager’s commitment to ethics and their organisation’s engagement with internal and external stakeholders on ethics.

 

Organisational culture

  • Employees in Japan are among the least likely of the 16 surveyed countries to find each of eight ethically questionable practices outlined on p9 of the global report to be acceptable. They are significantly less likely than the global average to find each of these practices acceptable (11% vs 20% global average).
  • Around four in five employees in Japan say that honesty is practised always or frequently in their organisation (82%), similar to the percentage of employees who say so globally (84% global average).
  • A fifth of employees in Japan feel pressured to compromise on ethical standards of behaviour (20%). They are among the most likely to feel pressure, alongside employees in Portugal (22%) and India (36%) vs a global average of 15%. Around two in five employees in Japan who have felt pressured to compromise on ethical standards say that following their boss's orders (38%) and time pressure / unrealistic deadlines (35%) are the main sources of pressure.
  • Around a fifth of employees in Japan reported being aware of conduct that they thought violated either the law or their organisation’s ethical standards in the last year (20%). The global average is 25%.

Speaking up

  • Around two in five employees in Japan who were aware of misconduct spoke up about it with management, another appropriate person, or through any other mechanism (41%). This figure is well below the percentage of employees who say so globally (64% global average). Of the 16 surveyed countries, they are the least likely to speak up.
  • Of those who did not report a concern, around a quarter of them cited a lack of belief that corrective action would be taken (23%) and fear of jeopardising their job (23%) as key deterrents to speaking up.
  • Of those reporting a concern, nearly a third (31%) say that they experienced a form of personal disadvantage or retaliation as a result. This figure is well below the 2024 global average - where nearly half said so (46%). They are among the least likely to experience retaliation, alongside employees in Brazil (31%), Spain (31%) and the UK (29%).
  • Nearly two-thirds of employees in Japan say they were satisfied with the outcome after raising concerns about misconduct (63%). This figure is below the percentage of employees who say so globally in 2024 (71% global average).

The ethics programme

  • Employees in Japan are less likely than average to say that they are aware of their organisation providing each of four building blocks of an ethics programme. For example, only 50% are aware that their organisation has written standards of ethical business conduct that provides guidelines for their job, compared to a global average of 71%. Of the 16 surveyed countries, they are the least likely to be aware that their organisation has either written standards of ethical business conduct or to be aware that their organisation provides employees with a means of reporting misconduct confidentially (40% vs 61% global average).

Embedding ethics through a supportive environment

  • In Japan, 49% of employees (vs 72% global average) agree that their line manager sets a good example of ethical business behaviour, 52% (vs 68% global average) agree that their line manager explains the importance of honesty and ethics in the work they do and 51% (vs 72% global average) agree that their line manager supports them in following their organisation’s standards of ethical behaviour. While 52% of employees in Japan (vs 71% global average) agree that senior management takes ethics seriously in their organisation, 27% (vs 38% global average) also agree that their line manager rewards employees who get good results, even if they use practices that are ethically questionable. Of the 16 surveyed countries, they are the least likely to agree with these statements.
  • 65% of employees in Japan (vs 76% global average) agree that their organisation acts responsibly in all its business dealings and 69% (vs 72% global average) that it lives up to its stated policy of social responsibility.
  • Employees in Japan are also likely to have a poorer view of how their organisation engages with employees on ethics. They are significantly less likely than the global average to agree that people in their organisation know what is expected of them in terms of ethical behaviour (52% vs 77% global average), that in their organisation decisions about people are made fairly (56% vs 67% global average) and that issues of right and wrong are discussed in staff meetings (45% vs 62% global average). Of the 16 surveyed countries, they are among the least likely to agree with these statements.
  • Employees in Japan are also significantly less likely than average to agree that their organisation disciplines employees who violate its ethical standards (49% vs 65% global average). Of the 16 surveyed countries, they are among the least likely to agree with this statement.